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President Obama To Visit Arkansas Communities Hit By Deadly Tornado

President Barack Obama will be in Arkansas next week to visit the communities hit by Sunday’s deadly tornado.

Senator Mark Pryor’s office announced on Saturday (May 3) that the President accepted the Senator’s invitation to visit areas devastated by the EF-4 tornado.

The White House announced the visit will take place on Wednesday, May 7th. Senator Pryor said he’s pleased the President can come see the affected areas for himself.

“Since the tornadoes tore through our state this week, we’ve seen folks come together to help those affected get back on their feet,” Pryor said. “We have disaster relief funding headed our way, but there’s more we can do to give Arkansans the help they need. I’m pleased the President is headed to Arkansas and can see the devastation firsthand. It’ll be a long road to recovery, but we’ll continue to do everything we can to help our neighbors in need.”

The President signed a disaster declaration for Faulkner County on Tuesday. Vilonia and Mayflower were the hardest hit areas, and fifteen people in Central Arkansas were killed by the storm.

The full text of Pryor’s letter to the President is below:

I write to invite you to travel to the Arkansas communities devastated by this week’s deadly tornadoes.

As you know, my state was recently hit by a series of tornadoes. On Sunday, April 27, 2014, storms tore through large swaths of central Arkansas including Ferndale, Mayflower, Saltillo, Vilonia, El Paso, Center Hill, Step Rock, Denmark, Velvet Ridge, Thida, and Pleasant Plains. To date, 15 lives have been lost, over 150 Arkansans injured, 264 homes destroyed with many more left uninhabitable, numerous businesses have been damaged, and countless families’ belongings strewn for miles and miles.

The last few years have been particularly difficult for our state. We’ve faced dozens of damaging weather events, ranging from tornadoes to ice storms to drought. In fact, some of the communities hit by last week’s storms had just finished rebuilding from a tornado three years ago.

The people of Arkansas are resilient. We’re working tirelessly to begin the process of cleaning up, rebuilding, and getting families back on their feet. It will be a long process, and I know Arkansas would benefit enormously from both private sector and federal assistance. As we see in many crises, Arkansans have come to the aid of their neighbors, family, and friends. Church groups, the American Red Cross, and numerous local and state businesses have come together to help those in need. However, expedited assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Small Business Administration, and other government agencies will be essential as we work to reconstruct the devastated areas of our state.

Your assistance in expediting all necessary aid is crucial to the affected families and communities, and I hope you will be able to join me in Arkansas to witness firsthand not only the damage to our communities but also the resilience, selflessness, and determination of our citizens. I appreciate your consideration of my request.

24 comments

cetude

Sarah 1

Wrong. Look it up.

Obama is most anti-immigrant president in recent history with his policy of massive, systematic deportations. He has now deported more than 1.2 million people, breaking up hundreds of thousands of families. This is in six years not eight.

Obama says the number of deportations has gone up because his administration is focusing on the removal of criminals. Yet less than 50 percent of the people removed have a criminal conviction, according to the Homeland Security Department’s own statistics. For example, 387,000 people were deported in 2010, of which only 169,000 had committed a crime.

Bush didn’t deport 1.2 million in his whole eight years in office. Of course he was busy with a ‘created’ war to line the pockets of his buddies. Remember that? Check your facts. Politifact, Washington Post, Forbes, any right leaning news organization (not Fox News as they make up their own stories then correct them at the end of the programs in a fast crawl).

You know the Muslim comment is innuendo. Shame on you.

Facts and there is no reason to call anyone names. It is an honor for the President to come to Arkansas along with the aid he will provide for these hurting families. Veteran’s families too, I know them. Get your politics out if the way and help the families.

Tom

Tom

You are quite possibly the most annoying person I don’t know. Please quit lecturing everyone with your incoherent rambling of mindless liberal rhetoric. I’m sure you can’t wait for your messiah to get to Arkansas so you can hold his jockstrap. We can all only hope that one day soon you will lose your computer and phone so we don’t have to read your propaganda.

Bob Gnarly

@Sarah:
My hat is off to you for your thorough presentation of the facts…

And for annoying Tom, lol.

@Tom:
Do you ever feel embarrassed in your futile attempts at, what can only be assumed to be an argument of some sort, with a person who has the ability to intellectually “step on you like a bug”? Or does that obvious fact escape you as well?

Lucy

Tom

A Veteran

We are a blessed nation

I still can’t figure out why so many people are against other people having healthcare. There are Muslims that are Americans and most of our ancestors where immigrants too. I was recently laid off from job and because of the affordable health care act I was able to get a surgery that I needed. I love America as much as anyone but I don’t believe that anyone in this country, who has the most advanced healthcare in the world, should be without healthcare.

Bob Gnarly

Tom

A Veteran

Totally respect this President. Kept the people first not his buddies bank accounts. Congress has said No to minimum wage increase, No jobs bill, No to Health carr over 47 times, no to lowering the interst on my college loans. Thank God for a President that says yes and sick of Congress doing nothing but trying to hurt the President. That has been their goal. Move to Canada if you aren’t content.

You people condemn him for coming, condemn him for not coming. Bunch of fruitcakes. Go to Canada.

Oh good. The much needed work can Stop. The people in need. In mourning can be paraded around by the Obama people for the press, in hopes that Mark Pryor can get a few votes. In Obamas case ‘less is better’.

George Bush Jr is acknowledged by ALL independent rating agencies and most around the world as one of the 5 worst presidents in American History. Considering what he inherited, what he did with it and the state he left the country it’s arguable he is the worst. The economy crashed on 9/15/2008 under Bush. Just 8 years earlier the projected National Debt by this time had been ZERO. Instead it stood at 11 Trillion dollars and was rocketing upward. On 10/3/2008 Bush and Paulson signed the 1 Trillion Dollar ‘Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008′ and pushed a 1 Trillion dollars of deficit ahead to the next president. One month later Obama was elected. You GOP puppet voters like to pretend you have some moral or ethical stance that make you superior in many, many ways. In fact you have far worst results, and are far bigger liars than Obama ever has been. You crashed it, Obama cleaned up your mess.

Ps

Canada’s middle class has grown despite healthcare for all their citizens and higher taxes for the rich. Whereas, Americas has not. We should learn something from them. 22 republican congress are not going to rerun for election, including Boehner because the tea party republicans are unwilling to compromise. When are tall going to realize that y’all isolate over glad the country and yet y’all keep trying to run on the agendas and it’s going to get worse. It amazes me to see how many republican political commercials I see with guns incorporated in them. Nobody is trying to take away your guns. Don’t let these people pander on your love for guns. Make them stand up for issues that matter. Make them stand up for a better quality of life. The rich make 99% of the money and they can also afford to high good attorneys to high their money and pay little taxes. There is also more millionaires in congress now than their has ever been. Now to me that just doesn’t sound right that you can get elected into congress and become a millionaire. How are these people supposed to be in touch with the general public when they have that much money. Also to both veterans thanks for serving our country and giving us the liberties to have freedom and be able to have different opinions and be able to voice them.